RNJR's Journey
by owlcat529
Summary: With her team broken after the Battle of Beacon, Ruby Rose sets out with the remaining members of Team JNPR in order to hunt down Cinder Fall and put an end to her plans. However, they are unaware of the true darkness that they are walking into as well as the light they carry. Will the rest of Team RWBY come back together in time to help their friends stand against this new evil?
1. Chapter 1

_She ran up the side of the tower with the help of her partner's glyphs. As she got closer to the top, a feeling of dread grew in her chest. She knew she had to go faster or else something bad would happen. She jumped the last few feet and landed at the top of the tower. She looked up, preparing to join the fight that should have been raging there, only to see an arrow bury itself in her friend's chest. Her friend took a few gasping breaths, then slumped forward with her opponent holding her still form up by her headpiece. A strange light flashed outward, then her friend started to disintegrate right before her eyes. Despair and sorrow welled up in her. If she had only been just a little bit faster she could have saved her friend. The emotional shock was too much for her. She was too late to save a friend_ again _that night. As her emotions surged forward so did something else. As pain built up in her head she cried out in anguish, then everything went white…_

* * *

"RUBY!"

Ruby jolts up in bed gasping. She trembles uncontrollably as sweat pours down her face. Strong arms wrap around her shoulders and hold her tightly.

"Ruby it's all right, it was just a dream," Nora says, trying to comfort the young girl.

"But it wasn't," Ruby says, failing at holding back her tears, "Pyrrha's gone all because I wasn't fast enough."

"Stop it," Nora says sternly, "You did the best you could; beating yourself up over what happened isn't going to change anything. Pyrrha wouldn't want to see you like this because of her so cheer up, okay?"

Ruby takes a few deep breaths to calm herself and wipes the tears from her eyes. "You're right, I'm sorry," she says with a smile.

"That's better," Nora giggles, "We've got another long day of traveling ahead of us tomorrow so we better get some rest." She bounces back over to her bed, but pauses before climbing in it. "And Ruby? If you ever need to talk about what happened at the top of the tower, then we're here for you."

"I know Nora, thank you."

* * *

The next morning Ruby and Nora join Ren and Jaune for breakfast in the dining room of the inn they were currently staying at. There is only a bit of small talk, mostly between Ruby and Nora. Jaune does his best to join in, but always fades off after turning to the empty chair next to him. Whenever he does this it's painfully obvious to the others that he just tried to get Pyrrha's opinion on the topic of conversation. After breakfast they gather their things and return their room keys to the kind old innkeeper.

"You kids be careful in your travels," she says, "the Grimm have been getting stronger around these parts lately."

"Don't worry about us, we can take care of ourselves," Ruby says confidently.

"I'm sure you can dearie. Goodbye."

Team RNJR (as Ruby had started calling them) leave the small town and continue on the road to Mistral. Today, like so many other days, they travel in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts. That is until Nora shoves Ruby and runs off shouting, "Tag, you're it!"

"Hey!" Ruby shouts running after Nora, "That's not fair."

"Guys stop fooling around," Jaune says as they chase each other around. "We have a whole day of traveling ahead of us."

"So? We're only having a little fun," Ruby giggles.

"Yeah, why don't you two join us," Nora adds while aiming a full body tackle at Ren who smoothly dodges.

"Nora it would be wise to save our energy for any Grimm that we may encounter," Ren scolds as he helps Nora up.

This proves to be a mistake as Nora takes the opportunity to tag Ren.

"Your it, Ren!" she shouts gleefully as she runs ahead of the others, "Catch me if you can!"

Nora quickly disappears around a curve in the road, giggling all the way. Ren just sighs and continues at the same pace as before.

"You guys are no fun," Ruby pouts.

"In case you've forgotten Ruby, we're not out here to have fun," Jaune snaps. He immediately regrets it when he sees the dark look that flits through her eyes.

"You're right Jaune. I'm sorry," she says in a defeated tone, her shoulders slumping.

" _Nice going,_ " Jaune thinks to himself as he slaps his forehead. He jogs forward a few steps to catch up with Ruby and places a hand on her shoulder. "No Ruby, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You and Nora were only trying to lighten the mood."

Jaune mentally kicks himself when he sees Ruby quickly wipe tears away before turning to him, but before she can say anything they hear the all too familiar explosions of Nora's weapon. Ruby uses her semblance to speed ahead of Jaune and Ren. She rounds the bend in the road only to be sent flying back as something collides with her. She tumbles along the road and comes to a stop in a heap of limbs.

"Nora!" she exclaims once she recognizes what, or rather who, had collided with her.

Ruby scrambles to get out from underneath Nora in order to see if she was hurt. When she manages to sit up she freezes at the sight before her. Three large Death Stalkers are advancing towards her, flanked by members of the White Fang.

"Ruby move!" Jaune's shout snaps Ruby out of her inactivity. She scrambles to her feet while supporting a dazed Nora. She starts running in order to regroup with Jaune and Ren before the enemy closes in on her, but the White Fang start firing at her. One of the rounds hits her in the foot, causing her to stumble despite her aura. The closest Death Stalker lunges at her with its stinger. Fortunately, Jaune arrives just in time to block the attack with his shield. Ren takes a recovering Nora from Ruby, freeing her up to help Jaune deal with the Death Stalker. A second one comes around the side of the first making the situation worse. Ruby unleashes a barrage of strikes on the second one with Crescent Rose, but its tough armor protects it from most of the damage. Ruby dodges a swipe from the Death Stalker's claw only to land in the path of the third. An explosion announces Nora's recovery and sends her flying into the Death Stalker, hammer first. Ruby returns her attention to her own Death Stalker just in time to dodge another attack. Ren does his best to hold back the White Fang while the other three struggle with the Grimm, but despite their efforts they end up getting surrounded. A plan quickly forms in Ruby's mind that could turn the tide in their favor. She turns to Jaune, intending to put her plan into action, but what she sees erases all thoughts from her mind. All thoughts, but one that is.

An arrow flies seemingly out of nowhere and buries itself in the center of Jaune's chest armor, knocking him over. Images overlap and suddenly Ruby is back on the top of the tower watching Pyrrha die all over again. Her breath catches in her throat as Crescent Rose falls from her weak grasp. She clutches at her head as pain builds just behind her eyes.

"No," she whispers as the memory and reality flash before her vision, "NOOOOOO!"

The pain in Ruby's head reaches its peak and everything once more goes white.

* * *

 **Hey readers, thanks for taking the time to read through the first chapter. This is my first time writing fanfiction so forgive me if I don't do a good job getting the character's personalities right; I'll do my best, but I'm more used to writing stories with my own characters. Let me know what you think either about the story itself or my writing in general; I'm always looking to improve.**


	2. Chapter 2

Weiss paces uncomfortably around her room. After spending nearly a year in that cramped dorm room with its haphazardly built bunk beds her bedroom seems too large and very empty. And without the warm, smiling faces of her teammates it was so very cold and lonely. Weiss shakes her head to clear it. She can't let her emotions get the best of her, not here. Her father is already furious enough at her without her breaking the icy composure that every Schnee was supposed to possess. An unpleasant memory resurfaces once more.

* * *

Weiss sat in the airship with the last of the evacuees from Beacon. Next to her sat Ruby's uncle, Qrow, who held Ruby in his arms. Weiss was scared for her young leader. Almost immediately after seeing her disappear over the top of the tower there was a bright light that had scared away the Grimm in the area. After the light had faded Weiss prepared herself to follow Ruby up the side of the tower when Qrow had showed up. He had instructed Weiss to stay put while he went after Ruby himself. It didn't take long for him to return with Ruby laying frighteningly still in his arms. Weiss had asked him a barrage of questions about what happen, but all he gave as an answer was that Pyrrha was dead. Pyrrha, the Invincible Girl, dead.

So now Weiss sat in silence watching Ruby's chest rise and fall weakly, wondering how she was going to tell Jaune and the others. The airship landed and Qrow took the lead. Weiss spotted Jaune standing next to the ship, searching the crowd of people that got off. Weiss started to choke up. She couldn't do this. Qrow and Weiss exited the ship last. Jaune's eyes widened when he saw Ruby unconscious.

"What happened?" he asked.

Qrow just shook his head and kept walking. Jaune turned to Weiss. She felt a physical pain at the look on his face when he saw that she was the last.

"Where's Pyrrha?" he practically begged, "Is there another ship coming down?"

Weiss just shook her head, dislodging the tears that had built up in her eyes. She couldn't do this. Ren and Nora came running over with two doctors following behind them telling them not to move with their injuries. Weiss put a hand over her mouth to stop a sob from escaping when they too saw that she was the last one off the ship. Her free flowing tears told the three surviving members of Team JNPR all they needed to know. Nora buried her head in Ren's chest as she cried. Ren's constant calm was broken by tears of his own as he gently held Nora.

"No, this can't be happening," Jaune choked as he dropped to his knees. "Pyrrha… PYRRHAAAA! WHYYY!"

Weiss dropped down beside Jaune and tried to comfort him, but all that would come out was, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

As much as it pained her to leave them in such a state, Weiss was worried about her own team as well. She was determined to get clear answers out of Qrow as to what happened to Ruby since he seemed to know something. She set off in the direction that Qrow had gone, leaving Jaune's heart wrenching cries behind her. After a bit of asking she entered a building that was being used as a temporary hospital. Before she could get very far though she heard someone call her. She turned to see Sun and Neptune coming towards her.

"We just saw someone carrying Ruby in here. What happened?" Sun asked.

"I don't know," Weiss replied, "Ruby went up to the top of the tower to help Pyrrha and when her uncle brought her down she was unconscious and Pyrrha was dead." Weiss paused as her voice cracked then continued, "What about Blake and Yang?"

"Well, um, Yang's getting treated in one of the rooms here and, uh…" Sun trailed off uncertainly.

"What happened to Blake?" Weiss demanded a little too harshly.

"When the ship we were on landed she kinda just… ran off," Sun said hesitantly.

"What! And you didn't stop her?" Weiss exclaimed.

"Weiss, calm down," Neptune cut in, "We had to get Yang to the hospital so she could get treated."

"Which way did she go?" Weiss demanded as she left the hospital. "We have to catch up to her before she gets too far."

Weiss crossed the landing field with Sun and Neptune trying to catch up to her. She came to a stop when she heard the sound of an incoming airship. She looked up and was surprised to see that the airship coming in for a landing was Winter's. Weiss ran over just as the door opened.

"Winter! What are you doing here?" Weiss asked as her sister descended the gangplank.

"We have come to escort you home sister," Winter replied with a sad look on her face.

"Home? Can't you see what happened here?" Weiss said incredulously, "I can't go home right now! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find Blake."

Weiss turned and continued towards the city, but she didn't get more than a few steps when a cruel, uncaring voice rang out behind her. A voice that she had hoped she wouldn't have to hear again.

"Weiss!" her father barked, "Come back here this instant. You will return with me to Atlas where you will be safe, at once!"

Weiss froze where she stood then spun around to meet the glare of her father. His cold, emotionless eyes bored into her as she tried to hold his gaze. She couldn't afford to back down from him now; her team needed her _here_ , not in Atlas.

"No," Weiss declared boldly, "I have more important things to do right now than being the obedient heiress of the Schnee Dust Company."

Weiss couldn't believe she just said that and the look on her father's face as he stormed towards her just screamed that she was going to regret it. Weiss couldn't help but back away as her father came closer, but she wasn't fast enough to escape him. He seized her arm in an excruciating death grip and started dragging her back to the ship.

"Get. On. The. Ship." He spat in a deathly calm tone.

Weiss was terrified. She had seen her father this angry many times before and she had always made a great effort to make sure that she had never ended up on the receiving end of that anger. But things were different now, she wasn't alone anymore and she refused to give up the warmth she had felt since becoming a member of Team RWBY just to calm her father's temper. She struggled against his grip and used one of her glyphs to root herself in place.

"I am _not_ going back!" she spat at her father defiantly, "My team needs me _here_! Now let go-"

A powerful blow to her head caused Weiss to lose focus on her glyph. Before she could recover from the blow, her father dragged her the rest of the way to the airship and threw her into a seat. Winter followed soon after with a terrified look on her face.

"When we return home you will get a stern reminder of the proper respect a Schnee is supposed to show their elders," her father informed her as the airship took off.

Weiss shivered and watched as the ruined city of Vale shrank away as the airship gained altitude.

" _Please be alright guys,_ " she thought desperately, " _I'll be back as soon as I can._ "

* * *

A knock at the door brings Weiss back to the present. She quickly wipes the tears from her eyes and composes herself.

"Enter," she says in an emotionless, icy tone.

A servant enters her room with a briefcase in hand and bows to Weiss. "A package has come for you Miss Schnee," she says without raising her head.

Weiss walks over, trying to contain her excitement. She grabs the briefcase a little too eagerly and opens it to inspect its contents. Perfect. She returns her attention to the servant, about to dismiss her, when she notices the ears. The servant had cat ears like Blake, but only hers were a light brown like her hair. Weiss scans over the servant and notices that she is covered in bruises.

"Are you all right?" Weiss asks the Faunus, breaking her Schnee composure.

"I-I beg your pardon, ma'am?" the Faunus asks, lifting her head in shock at the young Schnee's gentle tone.

"You're covered in bruises," Weiss says, "No doubt the work of my father," she finishes bitterly.

"It's nothing to worry yourself over ma'am, really," the servant says bowing her head again, "It's something that I'm used to."

"Weiss, may I have a word with you?" Winter interrupts before Weiss can reply.

Winter enters the room without waiting for Weiss's reply, causing the servant to retreat quickly.

"That was a curious exchange," Winter says as she watches the servant leave. "Since when have you cared about the servants? Especially the Faunus ones."

"What do you want Winter," Weiss sighs tiredly, ignoring her sister's inquiries.

"I don't know how you did it, but it has recently come to my attention that you have taken a considerable amount of money from the Schnee family fortune using my name," Winter says. "Am I right to assume that it has something to do with the package you just received?"

Weiss can't help but let a small smile slip onto her face. She had learned that little trick from the two sisters, surprisingly enough, who had always used it to get snack money out of their dad's bank account while he was away. Winter raises her eyebrow at the sight of Weiss's smile, but decides not to say anything about it.

"Weiss, what are you planning?" she asks instead.

"I…" Weiss hesitates then decides she can trust her sister, "Winter I can't stay here. I have to get back to Vale. I have to get back to my team; my friends! They were all hurt during the Battle of Beacon and Blake even ran off. If she hasn't already then Ruby will run off too, most likely to do something reckless when she recovers and Yang won't be able to look after her because of what happen to her arm. I need to go help them. Please Winter, you have to understand."

"I do understand Weiss, but you know Father won't let you go," Winter says, trying to talk her out of it despite seeing how distressed she was. "After the scene you put on back in Vale I think it would be best if you obeyed Father's wishes and stayed put for the time being. I can cover for the money you took so please don't do anything else foolish."

"You can't stop me," Weiss says grabbing a packed bag.

"You're leaving now?" Winter exclaims in shock.

"Of course, I've been planning this since I got here. This was all I was missing," Weiss says waving the briefcase.

"Weiss you can't, Father will surely-"

"I will surely what?" their father says from the door. He looks between his two daughters, his gaze resting on Weiss's packed bag. "And where do you think you're going, Weiss?"

"Home," Weiss replies coldly before storming past her father.

"Take one more step and you will no longer be a Schnee," her father calls after her, his voice seething with anger.

Weiss stops in her tracks and turns to face her father, then smiles of all things.

"I always thought Weiss Rose sounded better anyway," she says before turning her back on her shocked family.

Weiss leaves the cold Schnee mansion behind her and heads straight to the docks, intending to board the first ship to Vale.

" _Don't worry guys, I'm coming back now. Just wait a little longer,_ " she thinks as a great weight rises off her shoulders.

* * *

 **Hey readers, after rereading the first chapter I realize it went by kind of fast. Oops. Well the second chapter is (hopefully) better. I'm not too sure about chapter sizes so don't expect any regularity there, but when I settle into the story some I might have a regular update schedule. Or I'll just stick to publishing them when I finish them which could end up being anywhere between a few hours later to a week later. I promise I'll try my best not to make the wait too long at the very least. Anyway thanks for taking interest. See you next chapter. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Weiss takes a deep breath of the crisp winter air then knocks on the door to the cozy house she had been directed to. Once she had arrived in Vale, she had sought out a familiar face to learn where her teammates were. It didn't take her long to find Professor Goodwitch who informed her that the sisters had been taken back to their home in Patch. And so after another, though much shorter, airship ride and a bit of asking around she now stands in front of Ruby and Yang's house. About a minute after she knocks a man with familiar blonde hair opens the door.

"Good morning," Weiss says with a slight curtsy, "I'm looking for my teammates Yang Xiao Long and Ruby Rose and I was directed to this house after speaking with people in town."

The man's face briefly looks thoughtful then brightens in recognition. "Ah, you must be Weiss Schnee. Yang and Ruby told me about you whenever they called home. Please, come in and make yourself at home."

"Thank you," Weiss says, entering the warm sitting room, "Though at the moment it's just Weiss."

"Of course," he says, refraining from asking for details. "I'm Tai Yang, Yang and Ruby's father. Can I get you anything to eat or drink Miss Weiss?"

"No thank you. How are Ruby and Yang doing?" Weiss asks, trying to keep the desperation out of her voice. "I didn't hear any news while I was in Atlas."

"Well," Tai says hesitantly, "I hate to tell you this after you came all this way, but Ruby left for Haven with some friends of hers. You actually just missed her by a week."

"I knew she was going to run off to do something reckless," Weiss sighs. "I'm willing to bet that she went with Jaune, Ren, and Nora too. What about Yang? Did she go with them as well?"

"No," Tai replies, his smile drooping a little, "Yang is upstairs right now. I'll go let her know you're here."

As Tai disappears from the room Weiss takes a seat on the couch. She's a little worried about the tone of Tai's voice when he mentioned Yang, but pushes the thought out of her mind. It _was_ Yang after all; she wouldn't let what happen get to her too much… right?

Tai returns shortly after with a sad look on his face. "She says that she's not in the mood to talk right now."

"Fortunately for her she'll only have to listen," Weiss says, standing up. "Would you please show me to her room."

Tai sees Weiss's worry through the steely glint in her eyes. With a sigh he motions her to follow him up the stairs. " _Who knows, maybe this is what Yang needs to get going again_ ," he thinks.

"She's right in there," Tai says, pointing to an open door in the hallway, "I'll give you some time alone."

Weiss takes a deep breath, tightens her grip on the briefcase she has carried with her all the way from Atlas, and enters the room. What she sees nearly breaks her heart. Yang sits slumped in the bed with tears running down her blank, uncaring expression as she gazes out the window at nothing. She looks completely broken; a shell of the hotheaded brawler that Weiss had come to count as a dear friend.

"I thought I told my dad that I wasn't in the mood to talk to you," Yang says in a blank tone without even looking at Weiss.

"Yang Xiao Long snap out of it!" Weiss shouts furiously, causing Yang to snap her head around in surprise. "Ruby, your _little sister_ , is out doing who knows what and you're sitting here _moping_ of all things! I can't believe this!"

"What do you expect me to do?!" Yang retaliates. "In case you haven't noticed I lost my arm!" She waves her stump around to emphasize the point.

"Last I checked you didn't need two arms to look for someone," Weiss retorts. "I was all the way in Atlas and even I was still able to do something."

"Why should I bother looking for Blake," Yang says, her anger quickly fading into sadness.

"Why? Why! Yang are you even hearing yourself? Blake is our teammate; our friend! What other rea-"

"Some friend she is!" Yang explodes, fresh tears falling from her now red eyes. "Even after what we've all been through together she just ran off for no reason!"

"There is a reason!" Weiss shouts as she storms over to Yang. She shoves the briefcase into Yang's chest. "And you're going to find out what it is. Then the both of you are going to head out to Haven together to catch up with me, Ruby, and the others."

"And what if I don't? Are you going to use your power as a Schnee to make me?"

"I'm not a Schnee anymore! I left my family name and everything that came with it behind in order to come back to Team RWBY. Now then, since Ruby has had a whole week's head start I need to set out immediately if I want to have any hope of catching up to her."

Weiss storms out of the room. Yang can only stare after her in shock. A few minutes later she hears the front door slam. She watches Weiss out the window until she disappears down the road then turns her attention to the briefcase that she had left behind. Yang opens the case and gasps. Inside is an envelope, her missing gauntlet of Ember Celica, and a robotic right arm. With a bit of difficulty, Yang pulls a letter out of the envelope.

 _Dear Yang,_

 _I've enclosed enough money with this letter to have this arm installed and for you make any adjustments to it that you may need. Once you've finished that go out and look for Blake. From what I could gather, she is hanging out in the commercial district of Vale most of the time. Once you find her be sure to remind her that she doesn't need to run anymore._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Weiss_

Yang clenches her fist, wrinkling the note. Her eyes sparkle with fresh tears and, more importantly, her old determination.

* * *

 **Hey readers, someone complained about the Weiss Rose line I threw into the last chapter. Uh... Sorry? Please don't get scared away! This story won't be about the shipping I promise! I suck at writing romance anyway so just think of it and any future ship references as... poorly hidden easter eggs of which ships I support :p. On the other hand though these characters have had a whole three volumes of bonding so they will care for each other in this story (but I am seriously clueless when it comes to romance so I don't exactly know where the line between friendship and romance is so I may cross it unintentionally in the future. Deal with it). Thanks for reading. I'll see you next chapter (if you decided to stick around that is).**

 **P.S. If the story is going too fast let me know and I'll do what I can to slow it down :).  
**


	4. Chapter 4

Ruby wakes up slowly to the sound of a whispered conversation. She gradually becomes more aware of her surroundings as her mind wakes up. She is in a warm bed in what she assumes to be a dimly lit room judging by the amount of light coming through her eyelids. Something about the conversation catches her attention. She strains her tired mind to focus on hearing the words.

"I hate to say this, but it… it looked a lot like Cinder's power. Do you think there could be some sort of connection between the two?" That's Jaune's voice, though it sounds stuffy, as if he had been crying recently.

"It could be a possibility, but we don't know enough about either to say anything with certainty." There's Ren, calm and logical as ever.

"Well there's no way for us to learn about Cinder's power, but maybe Ruby will be able to tell us something when she wakes up." Nora's bubbly voice rings clearly through the room.

"I… know a bit about Cinder's power."

Ruby's breath catches in her throat. She shouldn't be hearing that voice. Not here; not after what happened. She forces her heavy eyes open and turns her head towards the conversation. She's in a small room, possibly at an inn, with a second bed across from the ones she lays in. Jaune and Ren are sitting in chairs with their backs to her while Nora is sitting on the bed. And next to her is-

"Pyrrha?" Ruby moans incredulously, causing Team JNPR to turn their focus on her. "What? But how? At the top of the tower I saw you… What's going on?"

"Why are you asking us? You're the one who did it," Jaune says, his old goofy grin stretching across his face once more.

"Yeah, you were _awesome_ ," Nora cheers as they reposition themselves around Ruby. "You were all like 'rawr,' and the Grimm were all like 'ah,' and the White Fang was all like 'eek.' Why didn't you ever tell us you could do something like that?"

"Not again," Ruby mutters. "What are you guys talking about? I didn't do anything."

"What do you mean? You sent the White Fang goons flying and the Death Stalkers were-" Jaune stops when Pyrrha lays a hand on his shoulder.

"Ruby, do you remember anything that happened the other day?" she asks gently.

"Um… we set out from the town we were staying at and around the middle of the day we were attacked by some Death Stalkers and members of the White Fang. We were surrounded and outnumbered, but I thought of a plan that could help us win, except when I was going to tell Jaune I saw him get hit with an arrow. Suddenly it was as though I was back at the top of the tower and I saw you and the arrow and…" Ruby trails off, forcing her tears back as the scene plays out in her head once more. She shakes her head to clear it then continues, "I don't know what happened after that though, just that my head really hurt right before everything went white."

"You can't remember anything else?" Jaune asks surprised. Ruby shakes her head. "Well when I was hit with the arrow my aura blocked it after it went through my armor, but then you sort of freaked out. There was a bright flash of light and suddenly you had these light things around you-"

"It was if your eyes sprouted wings!" Nora interrupts.

"Yes that is one way to describe it," Jaune agrees with a smirk. "Anyway, those 'wings of light' passed over the three of us harmlessly while sending the members of the White Fang flying in different directions and it froze the Death Stalkers in place. Then the light wings swirled together and Pyrrha appeared in the center. It looked as though she was being rebuilt from dust particles. After that you collapsed so we brought you back to the town we were staying at the night before and, well, here we are," he finishes lamely

"Do you have any idea what this mysterious power of yours could be?" Ren asks.

"No, not really, but I think it may have happened before," Ruby says thoughtfully. "When I woke up after the Battle of Beacon my uncle Qrow told me that the giant Grimm Dragon was frozen at the top of the tower and that I was the one responsible."

"Qrow's your uncle?" Pyrrha asks suddenly. "Did he tell you anything else after you woke up?"

"Yeah… he told me that I was special and he said something about some legend that Professor Ozpin told him from long ago. It was about how people born with silver eyes were destined to be warriors that the Grimm feared or something like that. But how do you know Qrow? I never introduced him to you guys."

"Ozpin introduced us after the doubles round," Pyrrha replies.

"I've been meaning to ask about that," Jaune says. "You were acting strangely since that meeting with Ozpin and then there was that business with the vault and that girl under the school. What was all that about?"

Ruby could feel the tension between the newly reunited team. Jaune's eyes are clouded with worry, Nora's energetic impulsiveness is replaced with a rarely seen seriousness, and even Ren's stare has an intensity to it that Ruby has never seen. Pyrrha fidgets nervously under the stares of her team. She gazes at each of them in turn then rests her gaze on Ruby. She closes her eyes and slowly releases a long breath. When she opens them again it's clear that she has made a decision.

"You all deserve to know the full story about what happened," she says. Ruby and the others wait expectantly "Are you all familiar with The Story of the Seasons?"

"Yeah, I don't think there's anyone that hasn't heard that one at least once while growing up," Jaune says with the others nodding in agreement. "But what does a fairy tale have to do with what happened?"

"The Maidens from the story are real and Ozpin and the others wanted me to become the next Fall Maiden." Pyrrha's statement is met with shocked silence. When no one says anything she continues, "From what I was told, there are four Maidens able to use powers that go beyond Dust and semblances. There is a brotherhood that is in charge of protecting the Maidens and centuries ago they decided to take the Maidens out of the public eye and let their existence fade into legend. Recently the previous Fall Maiden was attacked by Cinder and had half of her powers stolen and so Ozpin and the other members of the brotherhood in Vale resorted to desperate measures. They decided to make me the next Fall Maiden by transferring the previous one's aura into me."

"So that's what was happening when we went into the vault," Jaune says in a small voice. "And I'm guessing Cinder has the full Fall Maiden's power now because I didn't stand guard like I was supposed to."

"Jaune that wasn't your fault," Pyrrha says sternly. "You didn't know what was going to happen, you just reacted to the situation as it unfolded. If it's anyone's fault it's mine or Ozpin's for not telling you what to expect."

"That doesn't change the fact that if I had just been watching the door none of this would have happened."

"We don't know that for certain," Ren says. "Cinder could have just taken the remaining power at the next opportunity she created. After organizing a joint invasion of Grimm and the White Fang she was sure to have multiple plans in place in order to achieve her goal."

"Right," Jaune replies halfheartedly. "So what about Ruby? Like I said what she did looked like what I saw of Cinder's power. Does that mean she's one of the Maidens?"

"I'm not so sure," Pyrrha says thoughtfully. "Her uncle Qrow is one of the members of the brotherhood I mentioned, but if he told her a different story then Ruby might be something else."

"He never did give me a straight answer to anything. It was as though he was hiding something," Ruby says partly to herself. "If only we could get in touch with him somehow so we could ask him."

"We'll just have to learn about it ourselves then," Nora declares.

"I don't think that would be wise," Ren says.

"Aw, why not," Nora pouts.

"The one thing we know about Ruby's power is that it appears to take a heavy toll on her. She's been unconscious for a few days now and after the Battle of Beacon she needed some time to recover before she reached out to us to accompany her on this journey."

"I'm sure there will be plenty of time to figure things out later," Pyrrha says. "For now we should get some rest and once Ruby's back to full strength we can continue on to Haven."

Weiss had made some great progress since she had left Yang in Patch. She was disappointed at herself for not saying everything she had intended to the blonde brawler because of her outburst, but she is confident that her message got through in the end. Now all that's left for her to do is the impossible task of catching up to Ruby. At least that is what should be happening. Ruby and the others are supposed to be a whole week ahead of Weiss, so imagine her surprise to hear their voices echoing through the frozen air from behind her.

* * *

Weiss stops on the road and listens. Surely she was just imagining things when she heard Nora's maniacal laughter. She hears chatter from the direction she came in so there are definitely people behind her. She dismisses the small hope kindling inside her and continues on. It just doesn't make sense for them to be behind her… unless something had happened. She stops in her tracks again at that thought and spins around to wait for whoever's behind her to come around the bend in the road. The voices draw closer with periodic laughter ringing out. Well if it was them then nothing too bad could have happened if they are able to laugh.

"Hey, wait! Don't go too far ahead!" a very familiar voice calls out clearly.

Then, much to Weiss's surprise and delight, Ruby tumbles around the corner in a flurry of rose petals. She untangles herself from her cape and looks back down the road as the others call out to her.

"Ruby! Are you alright?" Jaune calls out to her.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," Ruby calls back to him dismissively, "I just tripped."

" _Strange, it's not like Ruby to trip while using her semblance_ ," Weiss thinks worriedly.

"You should be more careful, you haven't fully recovered yet," Jaune's voice says, closer this time.

So Weiss was right, something did happen that delayed them. Weiss quickly scans Ruby for obvious injuries, but can't spot anything obvious. Ruby stands up and dusts herself off, then finally looks down the road at Weiss. Their eyes meet and their faces light up with smiles.

"Weiss!" Ruby shouts gleefully, nearly stumbling again as she jumps up.

"Ru-"

* * *

 **Hey readers, sorry for the delay; senior year suddenly decided to get busy for some reason. Don't forget to let me know what you guys think about the story. See you next chapter :).**


	5. Chapter 5

Blake rubs her temples, trying to alleviate the headache that had formed half an hour ago. The blaring music of the nightclub pounds against her sensitive ears as the smell of alcohol and sweat assaults her nose, but beggars can't be choosers. The frigid wind that had blown ahead of the approaching blizzard drove her to find someplace warm and seeing how the nightclub was the only thing open in the immediate area, Blake didn't have much of a choice. The bartender glares at her for the hundredth time since she entered. He obviously isn't happy with her just sitting there and not ordering anything. He starts walking over, most likely to kick her out, but he is interrupted by a commotion at the entrance.

"Boss! Boss! She came back again! What do we do?" one of the men says as he barricades the door, though he is barely audible over the music.

Apparently the bartender is an excellent lip reader because he bellows a reply, "Then open the door before she breaks something! Haven't you idiots learned anything! And turn that music off!"

Blake quickly loses interest and rests her head in her arms with a sigh of relief as the music cuts off. The bartender, who is apparently the owner as well, quickly heads towards the club entrance to deal with the new arrival.

"Who are you looking for this time Blondie?" Blake hears the club owner ask.

"Her." Blake's head jerks up as a familiar voice replies. She spins around, terror blossoming in her chest. The owner and his men block her from view, but Blake still manages to spot a flash of golden hair at the center of the group.

"You're in luck tonight; she over at the bar," the owner replies, stepping aside.

And there she is: Yang Xiao Long in all her glory. Blake freezes as her partner puts her scroll away. Lilac eyes meet amber and instantly flash to scarlet. Blake shakes herself out of her initial shock and tries to run, but the only way out is right past the advancing brawler. It doesn't take long for Yang to catch her in a steely grip, quite literally considering Yang had used her new arm to catch her. She drags Blake behind her as she heads for the exit, ignoring her futile attempts to break free.

"Thanks for the help Junior," Yang says to the owner with a cheery wave.

"Right…" he replies giving Blake a sympathetic look.

Yang drags Blake out into the frigid night and slams her against the wall. The first few flakes of the coming blizzard swirl through the air around them.

"Start talking," she demands, crossing her arms, "and don't even think about starting with an apology."

"Yang I-I," Blake stammers, "You can't be here, it's not safe. I'm not safe. If you stay with me, then Adam will hurt you again. I don't want that to happen; I don't want my friends hurt because of me."

"Too late for that, I'm pretty damn hurt and I'm sure Ruby and Weiss are hurt too," Blake tries to ask what Yang means, but Yang continues before she can. "Did you ever once stop to think about how we'd feel about you running away? Did it ever occur to you that abandoning us would hurt more than any wound we received during the fight for Beacon?"

"Yang-,"

"No, of course you didn't!" Yang is yelling now with her hair lightly smoldering. "Yes my arm was cut off and it hurt when I found out after waking up in the hospital, but it didn't hurt for long. I figured that as long as everyone else was okay then an arm means nothing; I could just get a new one after all. So I sat in my hospital bed and waited, thinking of all the stupidest arm puns I could for when you all came to visit me, but when the door finally opened instead of every one piling in to see if I was alright it was just Sun. I hated the look on his face as I asked him where you all were, if you were all alright, if you'd be coming by soon, but he didn't say anything until he sat down. I hated what he had to say, I didn't want him to be right, I wanted him to be lying just to play a mean prank on me because I couldn't bear to hear the truth. Everyone was not alright," Yang's eyes fade back to lilac as tears start spilling down her face. "Ren and Nora were hurt, Jaune was an emotional wreck, Pyrrha was _dead_ , Weiss was dragged back to Atlas by her father, Ruby was in a coma, and you… you just ran away from it all. Do have any idea how much that hurt, Blake? You, my partner, my _friend_ , just ran away and left me alone when nothing was alright."

"Yang, I'm sorry," Blake says as her own tears gather. "I panicked after seeing Adam again and I didn't want him to hunt you down because you were around me, so I left. I didn't know what else to do."

"You could have stayed and warned us. Then we could have figure out a way to take care of this Adam guy; you know Ruby always thinks of some sort of plan to get out of whatever mess we find ourselves in. Whatever happened in the past doesn't matter now; you are part of a team now, a family. You don't have to run away any more, alright?"

"Right," Blake says brushing away her tears.

"Now that that's settled," Yang says more cheerfully, "we can go catch up to Ruby. Weiss already has a head start on us so we can't fall behind any further."

"What do you mean? Where did Ruby go?"

"She headed off to Haven with Jaune, Ren, and Nora in order to find the ones responsible for the attack here in Vale."

"Their journey has an unfortunate delay at the moment," a new voice cuts in.

Yang and Blake spin around to see the White Fang lieutenant from the train incident. He tosses something down at their feet with a harsh chuckle.

"Did you honestly think Adam would give up on his revenge just because you weren't near your friends?" he asks Blake as Yang picks up the all too familiar hair piece that they'd always seen holding Weiss's ponytail in place. "He promises to bring you a red cloak next, Blake."

Yang charges him with a furious scream, but he runs off laughing. Yang is about to run after him, but stops when she hears Blake fall to her knees.

"Weiss, no," she sobs burying her face in her hands. "No, no, no, no, no."

Yang rushes over to comfort her partner as she fights back her own tears.

"It's all my fault," Blake cries as Yang draws her close.

"No it isn't," Yang says firmly. "Now pull yourself together and stand up, we have some hunting of our own to do."

* * *

 **Hey readers, not much for me to say this time around. Don't forget to let me know what you think. See you next chapter :).**


	6. Chapter 6

With Blake's inside knowledge of the White Fang the duo had scouted out three hideouts in just as many days. Unfortunately, since that knowledge was dated they had all been empty, until now. Yang does her best to mimic her partner's silent steps as they approach the hideout without any luck. Each snow crunching step she takes gains her a twitch from Blake's bow; a clear sign that she is giving away their advantage of surprise. Yang shifts over into Blake's footprints and though she doesn't achieve complete silence it's a vast improvement.

Blake stops beneath a rusted fire escape on the side of the abandoned office building. She motions for Yang to give her a boost up to it. They pause as a Beowolf howl echoes from the center of Mountain Glenn then continue when they determine that it is too far away to cause them any problems. Blake lowers the ladder for Yang, wincing as the metal screeches against itself. The two continue onto the roof and enter through a hole in the ceiling. The floor they end up on is riddled with more holes while the floors below them have collapsed, causing the office building to look more like a warehouse on the inside. The shipping containers stacked everywhere only help to complete this image. Blake's bow twitches once more as she tenses. She creeps over to the center of the room to better see the White Fang members below. Yang follows and soon hears the conversation that caught her partner's attention.

"Sir, I don't understand why we are still here. Our partner said that once Beacon fell we were to-"

"I don't care what our 'partner' said," Adam growls as the duo settle around the hole to watch the exchange. "What I saw after taking down the Schnee is far more dangerous than anything she can do. Speaking of which have you found any information on that yet?" he asks, turning to a second Faunus.

"All we've found out is that it is something other than her semblance," the Faunus says timidly, quickly dodging out of the way as Adam swings his fist out in anger. His blow collides with a shipping container instead, leaving a sizable dent.

"Did you at least find out _something_ about her?" he demands savagely. "I don't want to be caught off guard again."

"Th-there's nothing r-really noteworthy about her, sir," the Faunus squeaks in terror. "She entered into Beacon two years early, but other than that she's your average Huntress-in-training."

Yang and Blake look up at each other in shock. Blake signals Yang to follow her away from their vantage point as the conversation turns to Adam venting his rage.

"They're talking about Ruby," Yang hisses as loudly as she dares.

"Yes I got that part, but what I don't understand is why Adam is so agitated," Blake whispers back. "I'd even go so far as to say that he's afraid of her. This doesn't make sense; what could Ruby have possibly done to cause Adam of all people to get this worked up?"

Yang just shrugs, at a complete loss for an explanation. How could her sweet little sister unnerve the leader of a terrorist organization? Has she already changed that much since leaving home? Yang shakes her head to clear it. One problem at a time.

"We can ask Ruby about it when we find her. For now, let's just focus on taking Adam down," Yang says.

Blake nods in agreement and leads the way back to the hole, just in time to see Adam chasing away the other two Faunus. He walks over to a nearby table filled with papers and throws it down one of the passages made by the shipping containers. A group of White Fang grunts that had been walking down that way quickly turn around and find another route to avoid their raging leader. After making sure that there is no one else around Yang and Blake drop down onto a container and stealthily make their way down to the ground floor. Yang circles around the back of Adam while Blake makes her move.

"You don't seem too happy," she says, causing him to spin around.

"This is an unexpected surprise, my love," he says in a sickeningly sweet tone. "Come to beg for the lives of your remaining friends?"

"No, I'm here to avenge Weiss," Blake responds bitterly, the fear of her old partner creeping into her voice.

"You're here to avenge a Schnee? Oh how far you have fallen, my darling," he laughs.

"A least I'm not a monster," she shoots back.

"If you think I'm a monster now, just wait until you see what comes next. Since you went through all the trouble to come see me in person I'll take you with me on my next outing. That way I'll be able to enjoy the look on your face as I carve up your little red hooded friend; after you tell me what that little freak is capable of."

Yang's temper reaches its limit. She lunges for Adam, refusing to listen to him say anything else about Ruby. At the last minute he manages to block her fist with his blade, but the force of the blow still sends him flying. He jumps out of the way of the barrage of bullets Yang sends his way only to land in front of Blake's attack. Adam easily matches Blake blow for blow because of their past together, but Yang's unpredictable potshots slowly brings the fight to their favor, if only just barely. Then the rest of the White Fang members on site join their leader and the slight advantage they had gained slips away. Yang turns her attention to the small army now surrounding them, leaving Blake to face Adam alone. Her burning desire for revenge does little to make up for the difference in their skill and soon her strength starts to fail her as exhaustion sets in. Blake feels her aura shatter as Adam delivers a powerful kick to her chest. She slams into a shipping container, hard. Blood trickles down her neck from where her head collided with metal. The last thing she hears as she blacks out is a roar of pure fury from Yang.

* * *

Blake's head pounds as she regains consciousness. She is leaning against something soft with her arms pinned to her sides by a tight hold. She opens her eyes in a brief panic, but relaxes when she sees familiar gauntlets on the arms that hold her in place. Familiar in all ways but one she realizes as her panic flares again for a different reason this time. The gauntlets and the arms they are attached to are a deep crimson red. Blake tries to get up to help Yang; a wound that gives off this much blood could definitely turn lethal if not treated. As Blake leans forward to escape her partner's grip, Yang's arms tighten around her further.

"Yang let go of me," Blake pleads, "I need to treat your injuries."

"Don't look," comes a weak reply. "Please don't look, Blake."

"What? Yang I can handle it, let me go."

"No, promise you won't look."

"Yang…" Blake stops when something catches her eye. The surrounding area is a complete mess with White Fang everywhere though whether they are still alive is unclear. Flames flicker around everywhere with a raging fire growing out of control some distance away. What caught Blake's attention is the firelight reflecting off a large pool of blood. At the center of the pool is a shattered mask… Adam's shattered mask. Blake's eyes follow the crimson pool to its source. A bent and twisted arm sticks out from behind a crumpled shipping container, the hilt of Wilt still clutched in the hand. Blake leans over to the side until the top of Adam's head comes into view. His horns are missing. Blake stares down at Yang's blood drenched arms once more. "…what did you do?"

"Don't look, please," Yang sobs weakly.

"I-I won't, I promise. Now let go of me so I can get us out of here."

Yang's arms loosen and Blake quickly stands up only to regret it when a wave of dizziness causes her to drop to her knees. She stands up more carefully and turns to Yang. The brawler is covered in multiple injuries and more blood that Blake would rather avoid learning the origin of. What's most worrying is the look on Yang's face. Her eyes are fixed on where Adam lays, filled with a horror and revulsion that runs deep into their lilac depths. Needless to say, Yang would not be coming out of this unchanged.

* * *

The journey to Mistral passes uneventfully for the two, save for the increasingly aggressive Grimm along the road. The closer they got to their destination the more Yang returned to her old self, but Blake could see a new darkness in the depths of her previously gentle lilac eyes. Neither of them spoke about what happened, they just gave silent support when the other needed it. Now in the bustling streets of Mistral they stick close together to avoid getting separated in the crowd. They walk down the road with a sense of purpose but in all honesty they are completely lost. How exactly are they supposed to find Ruby and the others in such a large city? As if in answer to the unspoken question between them, a flash of red enters the crowd from a store just ahead of them. A red cape flaps in the cold breeze that sluggishly rolls down the street. The hood of the cape is pulled over the wearer's face to ward off the cold. Yang pushes through the crowd with Blake just a step behind her, their eyes never leaving the red hooded figure. Yang places her hand on the person's shoulders. They stop and turn around. Silver eyes flash in recognition below the hood.

* * *

 **Hey readers, sorry for the delay; taking finals, graduating, then moving all in a row doesn't leave much time for typing. Heh-heh, not my best idea, but now that the dust is settling back onto my computer I'm ready to jump back into the world of RWBY. Don't forget to let me know what you think of the story; positive feedback and helpful critiques do wonders for my motivation. See you next chapter :).**


	7. Chapter 7

The first thing Weiss becomes aware of is pain. It pulses through her slowly, deep and sharp. After a few pulses she realizes her breathing is the cause. With this realization she is able locate the source of the pain. Its epicenter is at the right side of her chest. Weiss struggles to focus her mind in order to find the reason behind the pain. She's injured… real helpful. But how? Why? Slowly her mind clears. She's cold… not the focus right now. She remembers a blur of red… rose petals… Ruby! The memories come rushing back to Weiss. She had seen Ruby tumble down the road from behind her. Their eyes had met and they were overjoyed. But then Ruby's eyes had turned fearful as her gaze drifted to something behind Weiss and that was all the warning she had. She had started to dodge to the side while reaching for Myrtenaster when a red blade had run through her from behind. The last thing she remembers before passing out was Ruby calling to her.

Weiss finally registers the dull roar that is filling her ears along with the faint sound of… crying? She forces her way past the pain and the cold, her breath short and ragged. She becomes aware of more things as she returns to the world. The ground beneath her is hard with a rock digging into her wound, a pressure rest on her chest making breathing all the more difficult, voices call out over the roar.

"Ruby please! Snap out of it!" Weiss hears Jaune scream, desperate to be heard. "There might still be a chance to help Weiss, but you need to let us get to her! RUBY!"

A grunt of pain is followed by the sound of someone skidding across the ground.

"Jaune!" Nora calls out worriedly.

"I'm fine," he grunts. "Focus on getting through to Ruby!"

"Ruby it's just us out here," Pyrrha tries next. Wait, Pyrrha? "The man who attacked Weiss is gone. Let us help! Please!"

Weiss finally begins to open her eyes, the shock of hearing Pyrrha's voice helping her efforts greatly. She cringes at the blinding light, aggravating her wound. She winces at the pain, but it doesn't hurt as much as she was expecting. It wasn't by much, but she realizes that the pain had slowly become almost bearable since she had first become aware of it.

Weiss looks down, seeking relief from the intense light as team JNPR continue their efforts to calm Ruby. White is replaced by red as her gaze rests on Ruby. The young huntress has her head buried in her arms right on top of Weiss's chest with her shoulders shaking uncontrollably as she cries. Weiss tries to comfort her young leader, but her heavy limbs won't respond.

"Ru…by," she wheezes, doubting she will be heard.

To her surprise Ruby twitches in response. She slowly raises her head, her silver eyes dull and unfocused despite being the source of the brilliant light. Weiss notices some wisps of the silver light falling down to her side, right over her wound.

"Weiss?" Ruby chokes out as her eyes regain their usual life.

Weiss weakly nods as the light and the roar die down. Ruby's eyes roll back in her head as she collapses onto her side next to Weiss. Footsteps rush over, but Weiss focuses her fading attention on her unconscious partner.

"Nora get the medical kit out of my bag," Ren says as Weiss feels pressure being applied to her wound.

Weiss's shirt is lifted after she hears a quick apology, allowing the frigid air to bite at her skin; not that she can get much colder at this point. Fresh pain spreads from her side as Ren begins his work. Weiss can't bear it any longer. Her eyes drift shut and she surrenders to the waiting darkness once more.

* * *

When Weiss becomes aware of her surroundings once more she is someplace warm and comfortable with the pain in her side reduced to a dull ache. She allows herself to drift in and out of sleep for a time as she listens to a crackling fire and soft breathing somewhere nearby. Eventually a movement off to her left jostles her out of her stupor. She opens her eyes and turns her head only to come face to face with Ruby. The young girl has a peaceful look on her face, her breaths deep and smooth as she sleeps.

"Weiss, you're awake, what a relief," Weiss tenses at the sound of someone on the other side of her. She shifts her focus, her eyes confirming what her ears heard. Pyrrha Nikos sits next to the bed she and Ruby are laying in. "Sorry about putting you in the same bed as Ruby, it's the best we could do given the situation we were in; it's fortunate enough that we found this abandoned cabin in the first place."

"Pyrrha what are you even doing here? I thought you… died," Weiss says the last bit quietly.

"It's complicated," Pyrrha replies with an understanding smile, "especially since we don't even know all the facts ourselves. You see…"

...

"…but will Ruby be alright?" Weiss asks, her mind reeling from what Pyrrha just told her.

"From what we know so far she'll spend a few days sleeping and after that she'll need some time to recover her strength, but we don't know if there will be any long term affects to look out for," Pyrrha explains. "Then there's the fact that the third time happened so soon after the second which may very well increase the time she needs to recover. And knowing from experience how powerful the people we're after are that could put Ruby's life in far more danger than anything else we may encounter."

"Then we'll just have to make her rest until she's better; even if it means tying her to the bed," Weiss says tiredly.

"I'll let you get some rest. It's long past my watch anyway. Good night."

"Good night. And Pyrrha?"

"Yes Weiss?"

"It's good to have you back."

* * *

Ruby stifles another yawn and makes herself more comfortable in the back of the wagon. When they had first come across the hunter (of wild game, not Grimm) on the road Ruby had protested against riding in the wagon and insisted that she was fine, but a stern telling off from Weiss had… convinced her to climb aboard and her constant exhaustion from the past couple weeks had persuaded her to stay. Ruby nestles into her sleeping bag a little further, trying not to think about what cute creatures the furs underneath it had belonged to before the hunter chose to sell them in the Mistral market. Ruby's gentle drift into dreamland is rudely interrupted by a pothole in the road. She hears a sharp intake of breath next to her and turns to see Weiss clutching at her side with her face twisted in pain.

"Sorry 'bout that back there," the hunter says, glancing back at Weiss with concern.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," Weiss replies, settling back into the position she was in before the wagon had been jolted.

"Right. Now, I've been trying to mind my own business since I found you kids this morning, but I can't help but be curious as to why you're all out in the middle of nowhere or why you're all traveling with injured members in your little band."

"We had no choice but to continue on," Jaune replies. "With our supplies running low and our friends' injuries needing proper medical attention we thought it would be better to press onward."

"And if you don't mind me asking why exactly are you risking life and limb to get to Mistral? Traveling isn't exactly the easiest thing to do after what happened in Vale."

"We all have families in Mistral that we are worried about," Pyrrha recites the well-rehearsed story for them all.

"That's understandable I suppose," the hunter relents.

His curiosity satisfied he returns his attention to the road, keeping a watchful eye on the surrounding area for Grimm. Ruby still feels uncomfortable lying, but she understands the necessity behind it. Besides, only the reason for them going to Mistral was a lie. Shortly after Ruby had woken up they had taken stock of their situation and really had agreed that it would be best for them to keep going.

Ruby let's her thoughts wander as she drifts back to sleep. They of course return to her newfound power. Again she can't remember what had happened after she had reached Weiss's side, just pain then white. To make matters worse she feels weaker after waking up this time than she did last time. Pyrrha suggested it was because of the small window of time between each use, but she can't help but worry that it may have a lasting effect on her….

* * *

 **Hey readers, as promised I am jumping back in; the fact that I'm practicing being productive before college starts is helping. Hopefully I can get this finished for you all before I get that work load dropped on me. As always let me know what you think. See you next chapter :).**


	8. Chapter 8

_...She couldn't handle it any more. Too much had happened in such a short amount of time and she just couldn't keep up. She wanted it all to stop; and so it did. Something stirred from deep within her soul and granted her wish in a wall of light. It started with the giant Grimm perched at the edge of the tower. It cried out in what could only be described as fear as the light touched it. Its cry died away as it stiffened. Then it stopped moving completely, its destructive rampage ended before it could really begin. Now it was the woman's turn. The smug look on her face was replaced with disbelief and anger the instant the light appeared and it would forever stay that way unless one of her allies found a way to free her. It wasn't enough, there was more happening with each passing second and she wanted it all to just stop. She pushed harder and the light expanded, but before it could spill off the tower she felt something. She couldn't describe what it was, but it was calming, reassuring, a reminder to stay strong; so she pulled back. The light dimmed and faded away, replaced by pain in her head. She tried to hold on, but the light had taken too much out of her. As she fell to the ground she saw a flash of red and bronze and a warm yet sad smile before the figure turned and walked away. Before she could try to call out to it, a crow flew towards her, dispelling the apparition. The last thing she heard before passing out was her uncle's voice reassuring her…_

* * *

"Ruby," someone is gently shaking her shoulder, pulling her out of her deep slumber, "wake up, we're here."

Ruby's eyelids feel impossibly heavy as she tries to return to the waking world. She sits up rubbing her eyes and lets out a jaw cracking yawn. She looks around at the expectant faces of her partner and team JNPR.

"What's going on?" she mumbles.

"We've arrived at Mistral," Weiss explains again with a slight huff. "We need to go register so we'll be allowed to enter the city."

Ruby looks around, growing more alert by the second. The hunter sits at the front of his cart patiently, amusement dancing through his eyes. Rising up behind him is a mighty wall with sturdy gate set within it, barring their progress forward.

"Oh," Ruby say, realization dawning on her. "Right, I'm coming."

She scoots to the edge of the cart and steps off only to have her knees buckle out from under her. Jaune catches her and takes her weight as she steadies herself while Pyrrha and Ren help Weiss off the cart. Nora collects their things and waves goodbye as the hunter continues on to the gate.

"You alright now, Ruby?" Jaune asks.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine, really," she insists. "I just went to fast, that's all."

"Come on then," Nora giggles cheerily. "The faster we get through registration the sooner we can let you and Weiss rest."

Nora skips on ahead, the extra weight of Weiss and Ruby's things doing nothing to phase her. She starts talking animatedly with one of the guards on duty while the others catch up.

"Of course," the guard is saying as they come within earshot. "Registration is taking longer than it normally does without the CCT so there will be plenty of time to treat your friends. Come with me."

They follow the guard through a side door and into a maze of hallways. Jaune stays close to Ruby the whole way, ready to catch her should she stumble once more. The guard leads them into a part of the complex that smells strongly of disinfectant and beckons them into a small room with two hospital beds set up in it.

"I'll go fetch your friends a doctor, then take care of your registration. The rest of you can say in here so long as you don't get in the way," he says before leaving.

Ruby flops down on one of the beds while Ren and Pyrrha help Weiss into the other. Jaune spends a few seconds talking Nora out of building a leaning tower of luggage before sinking into one of the chairs also present in the room.

"How are you two holding up?" Ren asks.

"It could be worse," Weiss says, gently leaning back into the pillows on her bed. Ruby just lets out a muffled groan, not even bothering to lift her head from her own pillow.

"Don't worry Ruby, you'll get all the rest you need once we find someplace to settle in Mistral," Jaune assures her.

"But we have to start looking for Cinder," Ruby argues, raising her head up enough to be understood.

"Don't worry, we'll handle that," Nora chirps. "So for now you get your rest."

"You guys are getting ahead of yourselves," Weiss interrupts. "We have to get through registration first."

"Don't worry about that," Pyrrha assures her. "It's only purpose is to have records of everyone in the kingdom should anything happen. They might ask us a few questions about what happened in Vale, but other than that it's just basic information about ourselves, though we'll have to change our story a little just in case they find records that contradict it."

"Hey Pyrrha, since you're originally from Mistral can't you just skip registration?" Nora asks.

"I could, but I'd rather stick around for a while to make sure you guys are all set," she replies.

Just then the guard returns with a young woman in a doctor's uniform. While the guard asks them simple questions like their names and occupations the doctor looks over Weiss and Ruby. Ruby has a fever and though it isn't high enough to be a cause of concern it still earns them all a stern scolding from the doctor about traveling in such a condition. Then she gets to Weiss and her scolding turns into a full on rant that can be heard down the hall of how lucky they all are that Weiss is still alive. Weiss gets taken off to surgery in order to have Ren's hasty field patch replaced with professional stitching and bandaging while Pyrrha heads into town to secure them a place to stay after the guard clears her from registration. It isn't until late that evening when Ruby and the others finally get to burry themselves under the warm covers of a comfy hotel bed and sleep without having to worry about the threat of a late night Grimm attack.

* * *

"Ruby you're supposed to be resting," Weiss sighs from her bed, not even bothering to look up from the book she is reading.

Ruby groans in frustration from the door of the room they shared with Pyrrha and Nora. For the past several days she's been doing nothing but resting while team JNPR scoured the kingdom for any information of Cinder and her allies and it was _boring_.

"Weiss I'm just going out to stretch my legs a little, maybe buy some snacks or something. I just can't sit around in here any longer," Ruby whines.

"Ruby," Weiss moans, not really in the mood to argue since she herself is getting restless from staying in bed, "please just… be careful, alright? And don't even think about searching for Cinder."

"I won't, I promise," Ruby says cheerily before evacuating the room before her partner can change her mind.

A frigid wind mercilessly blows the warmth of the hotel away from Ruby as she steps outside. She raises her hood and pulls her cloak around her to try and retain some body heat before setting off down the street. The kingdom of Mistral is a lot like Vale with tall buildings surrounding bustling streets lined with store fronts. Ruby takes careful note of which street she's on so she can ask for directions if she gets lost before following the flow of the crowd. She wanders around aimlessly, stopping from time to time to look at window displays that catch her attention before moving on. Around noon a lovely aroma and her rumbling stomach lead her into a bakery. Despite reminding herself that they only have a limited amount of money, Ruby settles down at one at the tables with a large slice of strawberry cake and half a dozen cookies. Weiss will probably scold her for eating this particular selection for lunch, but then again Weiss doesn't have to know what Ruby's eating. After licking her plate clean Ruby pulls her hood back up and steps out into the winter air once more. As she continues her wandering something pricks at the back of her mind. Someone is watching her. She ignores the feeling as best she can as she walks, but then a hand falls on her shoulder; a cold, hard hand. She is startled by the sudden contact, but for some reason she doesn't feel threatened as she turns to face the owner of the hand. She stares into two familiar lilac orbs framed by flowing locks of golden hair.

"Yang!" she squeals in delight as she wraps her older sister in a tight hug. She glances over Yang's shoulder expectantly, meeting the amber gaze she was searching for. "Blake, you're here too! Oh, it's so good to see you!"

"Hey Ruby, it's good to see you too," Blake says as Ruby transfers her hug over to her.

Breaking off from the hug, the three take a moment to assess each other. Yang and Blake grow concerned as they take in just how ragged their young leader is. She has dark bags under her eyes and her cheeks are a little draw, but the smile that lights up her face is genuine and lacks the pain and sadness they had been expecting. On Ruby's side of the observation the pair look haunted, especially Yang. Something deep in her eyes just dims some of the brightness of her smile and it scares Ruby.

"Are you two alright?" Ruby asks the question first. "You look like you've seen a ghost. Did something happen on your way here?"

Yang winces, sometime Ruby was a little too perceptive for her liking. "No nothing happened other than the occasional Grimm attack." Yang knows that Ruby could tell she is lying, but she also knows that she won't pressure her for details. "Besides, we should be asking you that. You look absolutely exhausted."

"Heh, it's a long story; believe me," she replies, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head.

Blake shares a confused look with Yang. This is not how they were expecting Ruby to act when they finally found her. She was too happy after what had happen to Weiss and she wasn't even faking it.

"Uh, Ruby are you sure you're okay?" Yang asks hesitantly.

"Yes I'm fine," Ruby huffs in annoyance, "why do you keep asking me that?"

"Well it's just that… you see," Yang sighs, knowing she can't avoid the subject forever. "Before we left Vale a member of the White Fang approached us and told us that… that Weiss is dead," she finishes while pulling out Weiss's hair piece.

Yang and Blake hold their breath as confusion spreads across Ruby's face. He brow furrows as her eyes dart from the hair piece to them. Finally, her face lights up in realization and to Yang and Blake's great surprise, Ruby smiles.

"Come on," she says starting off down the street towards the hotel, "there's a lot you two need to be filled in on."

* * *

Yang and Blake sit in stunned silence, their minds reeling from what Weiss had just told them.

"Wait, wait, wait, let me get this straight," Yang finally says, waving her arms in front of her face as if to swat away the onslaught of information. "Ruby has some sort of fairy tale powers and she uses them to freeze Grimm, revive dead people, and heal life threatening injuries all without knowing what she's even doing?"

"Well when you say it like that it sounds pretty lame," Ruby pouts.

"Say what you want Yang, but the truth's all around," Weiss says patiently. "The dragon that attacked Vale is frozen, I'm sitting right in front of you perfectly healthy despite being stabbed through the chest, and when the others come back Pyrrha will be right there with them."

As if on cue Nora bursts through the door heartily shouting, "WE'RE BACK! Oh, hi Blake, hi Yang, Weiss told us you'd be coming eventually."

"Nora could you let the rest of us in?" comes Ren's calm voice from behind her.

"Oh, right, of course," she giggles while jumping further into the room.

Ren enters next with Jaune following him and, sure enough, Pyrrha bringing up the rear.

"Hello again," she greats, "I'm sure Weiss and Ruby already filled you in."

Yang and Blake can only manage to nod in their shock.

"Any luck?" Ruby asks excitedly.

"No," Jaune replies tiredly, "we've just been going around in circles mostly. It's almost as if Cinder and her team didn't exist before they came to Beacon."

"They said they were from Haven, didn't they?" Blake asks, "Did you try going there yet?"

"We were planning on waiting for Weiss and Ruby to recover before heading there," Pyrrha explains.

"Why wait?" Yang asks.

"It's just a hunch I have," Pyrrha says a little embarrassed. "It might be nothing, but if something does come from it then it will be best if we're all in our best conditions."

"Alright then, tomorrow Yang and I will join you in searching the town. Maybe we can get in touch with Sun and his team and get some help from them as well." Blake suggests.

"Sounds like a plan," Yang agrees. "So where are we staying tonight?"

* * *

 **Hey readers, here's another chapter for you all. Don't forget to let me know what you think. See you next chapter :).**


	9. Chapter 9

"Sup losers," Sun says as he joins team RWBY at a café near Haven. "I haven't seen you guys in, like, forever. How have you been? And why are you all the way out here in Mistral?"

It has been a full three weeks since Yang and Blake have joined the group. Both Ruby and Weiss had recovered enough for the two teams to move on to the next step in finding answers; about Cinder or otherwise. That means they need to get into Haven Academy as smoothly as possible, hence Sun's involvement.

"As you can see we're all fine, though we… hit a few rough patches on the journey here," Blake answers. "We came to Mistral to find leads on the ones that attacked Beacon, but we need to talk with the headmaster of Haven. Do you think you can get us in?"

"Easy, the headmaster has been trying to fit together everything that happened in Vale so she'll be more than willing to talk to you. Come on, I'll take you to her now," Sun says, jumping up from his seat.

"Hold up, we're not done yet," Yang says, dragging him back down into his chair.

"There's still something we need to know before we go see the headmaster," Ruby adds.

"Like what?" Sun asks slowly.

"Did you tell your headmaster about Pyrrha's death?" Weiss inquires quietly.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"How wide spread is that knowledge?"

"I don't know. My team knows of course, we told the headmaster and she obviously told the Nikos family, but other than that I couldn't say. Why are you guys asking?"

"Well you see, Pyrrha is kinda still alive," Ruby says awkwardly, "and she's kinda here with us."

"Seriously?!" Sun exclaims, looking around the café.

"She's not in the café," Blake says, rolling her eyes. "But seriously, she's here with the rest of her team and we all need to talk with the headmaster."

"Hold up, how is Pyrrha still alive? If she had an injury bad enough to make people think she was dead there's no way she could have made it out of Beacon with all those Grimm running around. And as far as I know there were no attempts to return to the school while my team and I were still stuck in Vale so there's no way someone went up there and found her."

"Well… none of us were really there so we don't know the exact details," Yang comes up with on the spot, "but apparently it was a really close call. She just barely made it through, an impossible miracle, you know?"

Sun seems skeptical still, but fortunately doesn't push the matter. "I'm going to assume that you're telling me this so I can make sure there isn't a big panic about a dead girl walking around, right?"

"That's a dramatic way to put it, but yes we would appreciate it if you alerted your headmaster so we can attract as little attention as possible," Weiss sums up.

"Done, meet me at the front of Haven in an hour… unless there's something else you need to tell me?" Sun says uncertainly.

"Nope, that's all," Blake smiles, "Thank you for this Sun."

"Eh, no problem. Later," Sun scampers out of the café, leaving Team RWBY to breathe a collective sigh of relief. So far, so good.

* * *

As the two teams approach Haven Academy they spot Sun standing by the entrance next to a woman with bright scarlet hair. Even from a distance they can feel the pressure of her gaze as she looks them over. None of them miss how her gaze lingers on Ruby as they stop in front of her.

"Good afternoon. I am Mira Grey, the headmaster here at Haven. Sun has informed me that you wished to speak with me."

"That's correct, Professor Grey," Pyrrha says, taking the lead. "After the things we experienced at Beacon and on the journey here, we have a lot of questions. With Ozpin missing we were hoping you would be able to provide us with answers and possibly help us on our mission."

"And what have you experienced that would make you come all the way to Mistral in search of answers, besides the obvious reason of course," Professor Grey asks, as though testing them.

This is it; the moment of truth. Pyrrha takes a deep breath and asks the question that will hopefully gain them an ally: "What is your favorite fairy tale?"

Professor Grey raises an eyebrow, her gaze passing over the young hunters standing in front of her again as she reevaluates them. She grows even more serious as she answers, "The Story of the Seasons. I take it you are all familiar with this particular story?"

"Yes, as well as an old legend," Pyrrha replies while subtly pointing at Ruby.

"I see. Sun I believe you have class to return to; I will see to the needs of your friends."

Professor Grey leads the small group away from a very confused Sun and towards the CCT tower that undoubtedly holds her office. The large room at the top of the tower has the same gear mechanism that was in Ozpin's office though the desk and chair are of a simpler design than their eccentric headmaster's.

"So," she says, taking a seat behind the desk, "you all finally decided to come see me. I have to say it's about time. I was starting to think you wouldn't come."

"Wait, you were expecting us?" Jaune asks.

"Of course. The minute you stepped into Mistral, Qrow stopped by and filled me in on everything that happened."

"Uncle Qrow's here?" Yang asks.

"Not anymore; I sent him off on reconnaissance. Did you not know he's been following you since you left Vale?" she sighs as they all shake their heads. "Seriously, that man avoids responsibility like the plague. I swear when he gets back I'll have a few choice words for him. Alright then, ask all the questions you want and we'll go from there."

"So these maidens, what exactly are they?" Jaune begins. "All we really know is that they have special powers."

"The maidens are four individuals that are able to call upon the power of the elements without having to use Dust. Like a semblance, their power is linked to their aura, but it runs much deeper. Unlike a semblance though, a maiden's powers are still useable after their aura is depleted, giving them an advantage in a fight while also leaving them vulnerable."

"Alright then, what about this secret brotherhood? What do they do?" Yang asks next.

"The brotherhood's main purpose is to act as guardians, both to the maidens and to the world. Its members consist of the headmasters of each academy as well as a few skilled hunters such as Qrow and Glynda. The duties of the members can range from protecting a maiden to investigating something related to the secrets we keep from the world. Qrow's job is the latter while the former typically falls to the headmasters."

"What about silver eyes?" Ruby pipes up. "How do they fit into all this?"

"To be honest we know very little about silver eyed warriors and their powers," Professor Grey admits. "They come from a time before the maidens existed. In fact, there are some in the brotherhood that believe the wizard responsible for giving the original maidens their powers had silver eyes. With this theory we can assume that those with silver eyes share the same powers as the maidens in regards to elemental control, but it has never been proven. What is proven is that the Grimm do in fact fear those with silver eyes and that they can be frozen with their power."

"So do you think that you can help me learn how to control this power?"

"From what I've heard, the secrets of the silver eyed warriors are usually passed from parent to child, but I have experience with training maidens so you will have to make do with that to get started and learn the rest through trial and error."

"Right," Ruby says, determination burning in her silver eyes, "when do we get started?"

* * *

 **Hey readers, I'm alive! Disappointed with the chapter quality? Yeah, so am I. College hit me harder than I expected and the fact that it's an accelerated course doesn't help matters. I'll try to do better, but in the end you guys will be the judge of that. Don't forget to let me know what you think. See you next chapter (if you decide to stick around that long).**


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